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Social worker
Social work is a professional and academic discipline committed to the pursuit of social change, to quality of life and to the development of the full potential of each individual, group and community in a society. Social workers draw on the social sciences to solve social problems. They may work in research, practice or higher education. Social work practitioners will usually possess a degree or registered license in the discipline, according to jurisdictional law. Research is often focused on areas such as social policy, public administration, program evaluation and development. Social workers are organized into local, national, continental and international professional bodies. Parts of social work overlap with other disciplines including economics, education, medicine, politics, psychology, and sociology. History Social work has its roots in the struggle of society to ameliorate poverty and the resultant problems. Contemporary professional development A hopeful development for bridging this gap is the compilation, in many practice fields, of collections of "best practices" which attempt to distill research findings and the experience of respected practitioners into effective practice techniques. Although social work has roots in the informatics revolution, an important contemporary development in the profession is overcoming suspicion of technology and taking advantage of the potential of information technology to empower users. Qualifications Professional social workers are generally considered those who hold a degree in social work. Often these practitioners must also obtain a license or be professionally registered. In some areas of the world, social workers education begins with a Bachelor of Social Work (BA, BSc, BSSW or BSW and some university conduct Diploma in Social Work Programme) degree. Some countries offer post-Graduate degrees like the master's degree (MA, MSc or MSW and Post Graduate Diploma in Social work) or the doctoral degree (Ph.D or DSW). In a number of countries and jurisdictions, registration or licensure of people working as social workers is required and there are mandated qualifications.The National Association of Social Workers (NASW, 2005). NASW Fact Sheet. Retrieved November 15, 2006 from http://www.socialworkers.org. In other places, a professional association sets academic and experiential requirements for admission to membership. The success of these professional bodies' efforts is demonstrated in the fact that these same requirements are recognized by employers as necessary for employment. Professional associations There are a number of professional associations for social workers, which exist to provide ethical guidance and other forms of support for their members and social workers in general. Some of these are international organizations such as the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) and the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW). Others are based at the national level including the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) in the US, the British Association of Social Workers, and the Australian Association of Social WorkersBritish Association of Social Workers website. Retrieved April 15th 2010 from http://www.basw.co.uk/Australian Association of Social Workers website. Retrieved April 15th 2010 from http://www.aasw.asn.au/. Alternatively, some organizations are founded with a more narrow focus. For instance the National Association of Black Social Workers and the National Association of Puerto Rican and Hispanic Social Workers, focus on minority communities. Others serve a particular field (e.g. The Council of Nephrology Social Workers), carry out a specialized function (e.g. Counsel on Social Work Education), or seek to provide a specific service (e.g. Network of Professional Social Workers). Role of the professional The main tasks of professional social workers can include a variety of services such as case management (linking clients with agencies and programs that will meet their psychosocial needs), counseling (psychotherapy), human services management, social welfare policy analysis, policy and practice development, community organizing, international, social and community development, advocacy, teaching (in schools of social work), and social science research. See also *Relationship Education *Sociology *Social research *Social theory *Social change *Social development *Social justice *Social movement *Social planning *Human Rights *International Development *Social care UK References External links *The New Social Worker Online *Definition of Social Work Adopted July 2000 by the International Federation of Social Workers. German translation also available at: Austrian National Federation of Social Workers *Social Work & Society - Online Journal for Social Work and Social Policy. Open Access and Non-Governmental Further reading * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Category:Mental health professionals Category:Health sciences ar:خدمة اجتماعية ca:Treball social cs:Sociální práce de:Soziale Arbeit el:Κοινωνική εργασία es:Trabajo social fa:مددکاری اجتماعی fr:Assistant de service social hr:Socijalni radnik it:Assistente sociale he:עבודה סוציאלית nl:Maatschappelijk werk ja:社会福祉援助技術 ka:სოციალური სამუშაო no:Sosionom pl:Praca socjalna (specjalizacja) pt:Serviço social ru:Социальная работа sq:Nëpunës i shërbimeve sociale simple:Social worker sl:Socialno delo sr:Социјални рад fi:Sosiaalityö sv:Socialt arbete tl:Gawaing panlipunan uk:Соціальна робота vi:Công tác xã hội zh:社會工作